The Methven Branch was a

branch line A branch line is a phrase used in railway terminology to denote a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Industrial spur An industr ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

that was part of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

national rail network In United States railroading, the term national rail network, sometimes termed "U.S. rail network", refers to the entire network of interconnected standard gauge rail lines in North America. It does not include most subway or light rail lines. F ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

. It opened in 1880 and operated until 1976.

Construction

In 1877, the District Railways Act was passed to enable districts to construct railway lines whose construction would not be financed by the government, and in May 1878, the Rakaia and Ashburton Forks Railway Company Ltd was established to construct a line inland from the

Main South Line The Main South Line, sometimes referred to as part of the South Island Main Trunk Railway, is a railway line that runs north and south from Lyttelton in New Zealand through Christchurch and along the east coast of the South Island to Inverca ...

Rakaia Rakaia is a town seated close to the southern banks of the Rakaia River on the Canterbury Plains in New Zealand's South Island, approximately 57 km south of Christchurch on State Highway 1 and the Main South Line. Immediately north of the ...

to the township of Methven. The first sod was turned on 19 November 1878 in Rakaia, and as the railway did not have to pass through any difficult terrain, it was built swiftly and the full 35.6 kilometre line was opened on 26 February 1880. Originally, the line was planned to connect to

Mount Somers Mount Somers ( mi, Te Kiekie) is a small town in Canterbury, New Zealand, nestled in the foothills of the Southern Alps. The population in the 2001 census was 2,307. Due to its scenic location, it has seen growth in the number of holiday homes ...

however this did not eventuate. Settlers began petitioning the government to acquire the line in 1884, and negotiations resulted in the line being incorporated into the national network in April 1885, though formal permission from the shareholders did not come until May.

Operation

The Rakaia and Ashburton Forks Railway Company possessed two 2-4-4T

tank locomotives A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of a more traditional tender. Most tank engines also have bunkers (or fuel tanks) to hold fuel; in a tender-tank locomo ...

built by

Rogers Locomotive Works Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works was a 19th-century manufacturer of railroad steam locomotives based in Paterson, in Passaic County, New Jersey, in the United States. It built more than six thousand steam locomotives for railroads around the ...

and they were used to operate trains from the opening of the line. As of 13 December 1880, the government operated the Methven Branch, but the company provided the motive power and rolling stock. After the full acquisition of the line by the government in 1885, it was operated much like other rural branch lines in New Zealand, with a crew in Methven operating a daily "mixed" train of both passengers and freight to the main line junction and return. The branch's main traffic was associated with agriculture, with the main inbound freight being fertiliser and outbound being livestock, and the busiest period for goods cartage came in the 1940s when 37,000 tonnes was carried annually. Passenger numbers hit their peak in the 1920s, and subsequently declined until the passenger service was cancelled on 7 September 1958. Methven was naturally aligned to

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

and its port in Lyttelton rather than a regional centre such as Ashburton, and trains began operating from Christchurch rather than Methven not long before the conclusion of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. A^B class steam locomotives were the typical form of motive power for many years on the line until it was dieselised in September 1967. Despite trains being cut to run only thrice weekly in 1969, Methven still retained a small diesel shunting locomotive in 1972. Traffic simply was not sufficient to justify the continued existence of the line and it was closed on 31 July 1976.

Today

Remnants of closed railway lines naturally diminish and disappear over time due to both natural and human impacts, though some relics of the Methven Branch can still be found. As recently as the late 1990s the station sign in Rakaia still stated "Rakaia: change here for Methven Branch" - despite the fact passenger services on the branch had concluded roughly four decades previously. At the south end of the yard, where the branch left the main line, some rails remained in place. The line required little in the way of significant earthworks, but the formation closely followed Thompson Track and then Line Road and can still be traced; some rails remain embedded in the road surface where Jamieson's Road meets Thompson Track. Some bridge abutments can also be sighted, and goods sheds remain in

Lauriston Lauriston ( ) is an area of central Edinburgh, Scotland, and home to a number of significant historic buildings. It lies south of Edinburgh Castle and the Grassmarket, and north of The Meadows public park. Lauriston is the former location ...

and Lyndhurst. In the latter locale, loading platforms built to serve sidings from the railway can still be seen at two businesses. Only one railway building now remains in Methven, though the embankment the railway used as it approached the town is still apparent. The 'Railway Reserve' in the centre of Methven is a small park adjacent to the Blue Pub and Medical Centre and was the site of the railway station.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * Hermann, Bruce J; ''South Island Branch Lines'' pp 12,13 (1997, New Zealand Railway & Locomotive Society, Wellington) *

External links

An Ab locomotive and train approaching Rakaia on the Methven-Rakaia Branch c1940 (photo)
{{NZR Lines Railway lines in New Zealand Rail transport in Canterbury, New Zealand Railway lines opened in 1880 Railway lines closed in 1976 Closed railway lines in New Zealand